American Son (Broadway)
Closed 1h 30m
American Son (Broadway)
85

American Son (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets

85%
(387 Ratings)
Positive
93%
Mixed
7%
Negative
0%
Members say
Great acting, Relevant, Absorbing, Thought-provoking, Intense

About the Show

A Florida police station in the middle of the night. Two parents searching for answers. Kerry Washington (“Scandal”) returns to the Broadway stage alongside Steven Pasquale  ("Junk") in this unflinching new drama.


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Show-Score Member Reviews (387)

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110 Reviews | 10 Followers
92
Absorbing, Edgy, Intense, Relevant

See it if You enjoy a powerful story of today’s reality. Simple setting, powerful acting.

Don't see it if You want a light story line.

TRC
161 Reviews | 26 Followers
91
Absorbing, Great acting, Thought-provoking, Relevant, Intense

See it if you want a well-acted small-cast drama that's tight, timely and tense. Thought-provoking. A packed 90-minutes with punches.

Don't see it if you want to be "entertained" or don't want to have your assumptions challenged.

67 Reviews | 20 Followers
91
Absorbing, Great acting, Intelligent, Relevant

See it if you are interested in stories about the real world today.

Don't see it if you are satisfied the way African American people are treated by the police

63 Reviews | 18 Followers
91
Absorbing, Great acting, Relevant

See it if You want to see an exceptional, but all too frequent story, told convincingly and with superb force.

Don't see it if You don't care about our racist society. Read more

50 Reviews | 7 Followers
90
Relevant, Intelligent, Great writing, Great acting

See it if You enjoy nuanced topics. The true reality of this story is eye-opening. Recognizing how easy it is to be trapped by stereotypes.

Don't see it if You are looking for dancing.

53 Reviews | 18 Followers
90
Thought-provoking, Relevant, Great acting, Challenging, Absorbing

See it if Every American (adult) should see this show. It has closed on Broadway, but thankfully will come out soon on Netflix.

Don't see it if Warnings for talk of violence, divorce, and race discrimination. On-stage violence is limited to shoving and restraining in handcuffs.

137 Reviews | 13 Followers
90
Absorbing, Great acting, Relevant, Thought-provoking

See it if you are interested in discussion about race in our time.

Don't see it if thoughtful drama is not your thing. Read more

180 Reviews | 54 Followers
90
Absorbing, Great acting, Relevant, Resonant

See it if want to watch what a family goes through and the different treatment the white parent gets concerning their bi-racial child

Don't see it if no reason not to

Critic Reviews (50)

Theater Pizzazz
November 16th, 2018

"Leon directs the excellent ensemble, wherein each character gets caught up in the maelstrom of racial conflict, stereotyping, and prejudice...'American Son' transcends color, expressing the anguish all mothers endure for their sons in danger. It’s primal, it’s devastating, and when we witness it on stage, it cuts right to the core...Nor will we forget Kerry Washington and her heartbreaking performance."
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Front Row Center
November 12th, 2018

"A play that will stay with you...Demos-Brown has written a play that takes a pick-axe to our identity as a country...Washington and Pasquale take on the challenge of performing mutual open heart surgery on one another...Leon’s use of silence and simplicity fuels the raw situation better than any stormy display could.”
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Front Mezz Junkies
November 11th, 2018

"Deep inside this tightly crafted 100 minute play, we can barely find a moment to look away from this fast-moving automobile...It falters in scope and speed at moments, here and there, struggling awkwardly to shift gears and directions with each new driver, but as directed with skill and precision by Kenny Leon, the vehicle never stalls or drops below the speed limit...That last 15 minutes of that slightly too drawn out evening of a short one-act play is worth the wait."
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C
November 4th, 2018

"The play's social relevance might well have been enough to get it produced (especially in the past few months when we've witnessed a slew of plays about racism on our boards), but there can be no question that Washington's involvement led it to the Great White Way. Having gained superstardom through ABC's hit series "Scandal," Washington has wisely returned to Broadway after nearly a decade in a role that's 180 degrees from her TV alter ego Olivia Pope."
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T
December 7th, 2018

"'American Son' may have a ripped-from-the-headlines topicality, and it surely holds your attention for its 85 uninterrupted minutes, but it's also mired in melodramatic contrivance, overwrought acting, and frequent implausibility…'American Son' raises important questions regarding the criminal justice system…However, Kendra and Scott are too artificially drawn to make their particular predicament believable, a situation exacerbated by the plot's too-obvious mechanics."
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DC Theatre Scene
November 9th, 2018

"A timely if flawed drama whose power comes largely from Kerry Washington’s intense performance...Too many moments in the 90-minute play feel like filler, or forced: There is much yelling, and a tense confrontation that’s less than completely plausible...A major problem for me is how many other stories I’ve seen lately that have been more effective, and more affecting, in covering much the same terrain."
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The Guardian (UK)
November 4th, 2018

"There is no denying the play’s emotional force. There are moments when you can feel hundreds of people all holding their collective breath. But though 'American Son' has the superficial form of a classical tragedy and a scene of raw suffering that few tragedies can equal, it also has a creaky dramatic structure, shallow characterizations, naïve politics and indifferent writing...A very powerful play without being an especially good one and that shouldn’t matter but sometimes it does."
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Gotham Playgoer
November 7th, 2018

“The action takes place in real time. The tension steadily builds until the sudden shattering climax. It’s a play that grabs your attention and never lets go. What it lacks in artistry and subtlety, it makes up for in audience involvement. The choice of a story about a mixed-race son may add dimension to the plot, but the distinction between mixed-race and black is not significant to the police. The acting is uniformly strong...The direction by Kenny Leon is brisk."
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